It's Good To Be Queen

Chapter 3

Protector Of Oz. Charlie Bradbury gained a new title. And this one wasn't made up. No Dollar Tree crowns this time. Although, she thought that, as uniforms go, the Dollar Tree version would have looked better.

Charlie was shown to a room on a higher level in the Emerald City castle. She was handed a neatly folded set of clothing that was her new uniform. She set her bag and laptop aside and proceeded to change into the outfit. It was tight on her. It probably hadn't been worn since Dorothy wore it when she was Protector Of Oz thirty years ago.

Charlie stood before a long mirror in the room. She muttered to herself, "I look like Elf. Don't think they used enough green. Well, this is the Emerald City."

Dorothy walked in and spotted Charlie in her official uniform. She whistled before she stated, "My, you look spiffy!"

"Shut up. This is so uncomfortable. Are there any regulations that say I have to wear this?"

Dorothy said, "Don't worry, you'll only need it for official Emerald City business. And funerals, unfortunately. They tried to make me wear it during battles, but I refused."

Charlie scoffed. "Good thing I knew that was an option. What else is the Protector Of Oz entitled to? And I just now realized my new title spells POO!"

Dorothy laughed. "You can leave off the 'of'. The PO gets their own room inside this castle. Free meals. A servant, eventually. You've been in Oz for all of three hours now and already you've established a residence." Her voice then dripped with sarcasm. "Of course, it helps to be a Queen."

Charlie turned to her. "Look, I know I pulled a Keyser Söze on you. I didn't know that information would come in handy. I haven't been Queen Of Moondor for over a year now."

"Then why did you keep it a secret?"

Charlie considered. Here she was again with her fight or flight conundrum. She could make something up like she had in the past. Since she met the Winchester brothers, she was witness to how lies and secrets could hurt people. That reminded her of Dean's secret to Sam about how Charlie was revived from death. Charlie told Dorothy, "Because it's not real."

"Not real? You're not a Queen?"

"Well, yes and no. I'm a pretend Queen."

Dorothy squinted. "I don't get it."

Charlie sighed. "It's called LARPing. Live Action Role Play. A group of us pretend to be in another world. A world full of magic, dragons, orcs, elves, and battles. Our weapons were pieces of wood with aluminum foil wrapped around it. My crown was bought at a Dollar Tree."

"Pardon, what kind of tree?"

Charlie thought of an equivalent store that Dorothy would know. "Uh, like a Woolworth's."

After a nod, Dorothy asked, "Why do you do this?"

Charlie offered, "Entertainment? Sorta like a play, only on a larger scale and no audience. I mean, you know how life can suck in our realm."

"I would say life in Oz is worse. At least you don't have witches and wizards killing your people."

"Well…ok…touché. It's just something we do to combat boredom."

"Trust me, you will have a shortage of boredom in Oz. And you are going to be in real battles here. No pretend swords made of wood. And real blood."

"I know. Sam and Dean helped me cope with that reality. I even tried my hand at being a hunter." She paused. "A huntress? Cool, I'm a DC character now."

"The question is, Red, are you ready now?"

"Yes."

"All right…Queen Of Moondor."

"Hey, can I appoint you as my Second? My Number One? My Thelma to your Louise? Not like we're going to drive off a cliff anytime soon."

"I don't know what that means, but yes, you can appoint a Second. More like an advisor. Unless Ozma changed that rule, too."

"Think she will?"

"Not likely. She may be prickly, but she misses me. She won't admit that, of course. And, it's rather fitting."

"How so?"

Dorothy frowned. "The Scarecrow was my Second."

"Oh, Dorothy, I'm sorry."

Before they could reflect, a courier entered the room. "Protector Of Oz. Your presence is requested by Queen Ozma at once. She is waiting for you in her ready room. Follow me."

Charlie uttered to Dorothy as they followed the courier, "My duty awaits."

The courier led them back to the first level of the castle and into a vast room with an enormous circular table in the center. Charlie's first thought at the sight of the table was the Arthurian legend and the Knights of the Round Table. Almost as if she were reading her mind, Dorothy nudged her and uttered, "I know what you're thinking. My father gave Ozma the Round Table idea long ago."

Queen Ozma stood at the apex of the table opposite from Charlie and Dorothy. "Please, Protector, sit down. Or stand if it pleases you. And this meeting is for official Royal business. Your friend can wait outside."

Dorothy squealed, "Ozma! Even for you, that's cold. You once called me your greatest warrior."

"Hmm, not so great after all these years, apparently."

Dorothy turned to Charlie. "Don't you have something to say? Like a request?"

Charlie spoke quickly to address Ozma. "Oh, yes! Uh, I am appointing Dorothy to be my Second."

Ozma replied sourly, "Of course, you are. If you so desire, your Second she shall be. Now, onto business. We have received word from Gillikin Country that there has been an attack there. More like a distress signal. It could possibly be an attack by the Wizard."

Dorothy asked, "Where exactly in Gillikin?"

"Mist Maiden territory."

Dorothy gasped. "They're not powerful enough to face the Wizard."

Ozma said, "It seems that word of the Wicked Witch's demise has reached him and he could be retaliating."

Dorothy asked, "Any word from Locasta?" She whispered to Charlie, "She's the ruler of Gillikin."

"Not as of yet. I fear the worst. The Wizard may gain sympathy from disciples of Mombi and fight on his side."

"That's not good," said Dorothy.

Charlie said, "I'm not liking this Wizard. I liked the feeble old man behind the curtain better."

Ozma chuckled. "I assume your friend has read your father's stories."

Dorothy replied, "Yes. Apparently, they've been extremely popular in our realm for several years."

Ozma addressed Charlie. "I'm sure you know by now that those stories are pure fantasy in this world."

"I'm getting that."

"Very well," Ozma began. "I am hereby assigning you your first mission as Protector Of Oz. You are to go to the Mist Maidens' territory in Gillikin and seek out what damage has been sustained. And investigate if this was a serious attack by the Wizard or merely a ruse to distract us."

Charlie raised her head and exclaimed, "I hereby accept the mission."

"Very good. You, and your Second are dismissed."

"Fine," Charlie replied. "Which way is Gillikin?"

Dorothy said, "I'll be your guide."

"Cool. First, I have to get out of this uniform."

Ozma bemused, "Is our Protector attire not good enough for you, child?"

"No! It's….fine. And very green. I just work better in my own clothes."

"Funny, that was what Dorothy said when she first donned the uniform."

Dorothy dripped more sarcasm. "Ah, you remembered." She addressed Charlie. "After you've changed, meet me just outside this entrance."

Charlie nodded and went up to her room to change. She then went back down to greet Dorothy.

"You ready?" she asked Charlie.

"You know I have to say it. We're off to see the wizard!" Charlie smiled a little too widely.

Dorothy gave Charlie a blank stare. "Please let that be the last reference to my father's books."

"I can't promise anything. Are we hitting the yellow brick road again?"

"Yes, but not on foot. I have an alternate means of transport. Follow me."

Charlie complied and Dorothy led them even further down into the bowels of the castle. She approached a corridor where an ancient wooden door awaited them. When they were at the door, Dorothy took from her blouse an old metal key. She used it to unlock the door and she pushed it open. It gave a loud creak from not being moved for thirty years.

Dorothy said, "I asked Ozma about this room and she said they left it alone all these years."

"What is it?"

"My lab. Workplace. Garage. It's had many uses." She reached for a switch on the wall and light from overhead flooded the area. It was a vast area that smelled musty and damp. A large rectangular table sat nearby. On top of it was metal shelves with various sizes of containers sitting on each one. Several cobwebs of dust decorated the room. "Sorry, my cleaning lady hasn't been here in thirty years," Dorothy said wryly.

Charlie started walking around to take in the place. "Ozma sure did leave it alone." She spotted a rather large contraption on the opposite wall. There were several wires with the old 40's style canvas casing coming from it. She made a beeline to it. "Is this what I think it is?" She took her hand to brush off a literal inch of dust. It was essentially the same computer that ran Sam and Dean's hideout.

Dorothy could see the glee on Charlie's face. "It is. I had some Men Of Letters help me move it in here. Never did get it installed."

Charlie jumped up and down like a giddy schoolgirl. "Oh, can I? Can I?"

"In due time. We have a mission right now, and this would be more than an hour job." She beckoned with her head. "Over here."

Charlie pouted but followed Dorothy over to a wider portion of the room. Dorothy stepped in front of something that had a dusty canvas tarp over it. Dorothy removed the tarp amidst a thick cloud of dust. Underneath was a 1940's style motorcycle with sidecar.

"Oooh, you had two of these? Is this the lesser of the bikes? The good one is with Dean?"

"Oh no. That one I left with Dean is the Oz version of a motorcycle. This one is all Kansas. It was my father's. It's faster."

"Guess I know where I'll be riding. You have something against walking?"

"Oh, Gillikin is too far to walk to. And I don't want to bother Glinda for a transport bubble. Go ahead and get in."

Charlie climbed into the sidecar, but it wasn't an easy fit. She struggled to find a suitable position. "Not exactly comfortable."

"Well, it once fit a five-year-old me with no problem."

"Funny. Why don't you see if it works first?"

Dorothy climbed into the driver seat and kickstarted the engine. It took a few pumps, but the engine did turn over with more clouds of dust and black smoke from the exhaust. It was loud. "Still works!" Dorothy yelled over the engine.

Charlie yelled back, "I'm sure you chose this so that you couldn't hear me talk!"

"What?"

"Never mind. Gillikin or bust! Let's go!"

tbc...soon